Theory of electron micrographs of amorphous materials

A method is given for calculating the electron micrographs of amorphous materials. It is based on the kinematical theory of diffraction and should be valid for specimens of amorphous silicon, for example, up to 100 in thickness. It is found that the random-network model for amorphous silicon accounts qualitatively for much of what is observed in electron micrographs obtained experimentally, but features of results obtained by Rudee and Howie using the off-set bright-field configuration appear to require the presence of at least a small proportion of crystallites. More conclusive experimental results could be obtained by using thinner specimens. © 1973 The American Physical Society.